Regarding the commandment: “Rise up before gray hair and cover the face of an old man”
Hello Rabbi Michael, I wanted to ask a few questions regarding the mitzvah of preventing gray hair from growing back and the mitzvah of covering one’s face with an old man:
- Maimonides writes, “He who is extremely old in old age — even though he is not wise, stands before him” – would it be possible to say from this that nowadays, when people over 70 are common (and they are no longer considered extremely old in old age), only people who look unusually old (say, 90 years old or older) are the only ones who are obligated to stand?
- It is well-known that it is sufficient to stand up in front of the elder once a day and once at night. Let’s say a person studies with his father or rabbi or an elder between Mincha and Ariv. Does he have to stand up in front of him at the beginning of the lesson (during the day) and at the end (at night)? Or is it sufficient to stand up once at the beginning of the lesson?
- Maimonides writes: “And even a Gentile old man, we should compliment him with words and give him a hand to support him,” if this is the rule for a Gentile old man, then it is also the same for a Jewish old man. If so, let’s say a person meets an elderly person in the marketplace, is there an obligation to compliment him with words (say, asking for peace) or to give him a hand to support him?
- Further to my question about “not to beg” (which also includes the prohibition of free gifts and praise), for those who do not believe as the Meiri do, how does the prohibition of not begging reconcile with the obligation to honor an elderly Gentile with words and to lend a helping hand to his trust?
- Is there an obligation to stand up for those performing a mitzvah? Does this include someone who is reciting the Knesset, or putting on tefillin? or studying Torah? or giving charity? Or should this obligation be limited to only rare mitzvot? Or perhaps even only to the mitzvahs of firstfruits?
- Is it obligatory to stand against gray hair/old age even when a person is in the middle of a Torah lesson or prayer? Or is it that a person engaged in a mitzvah is exempt from the mitzvah?
Discover more from הרב מיכאל אברהם
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
0 Answers
peace.
I will give a general answer to everything.
As I understand it, the commandments of establishing are derived from accepted norms. Therefore, today most people do not strictly adhere to the details that appear in the halakhah literally (with the exception of the most conservative).
In principle, a distinction must be made here between an old man and a wise man (and even a young man and a wise man), both of whom must be confronted. The age of the old man is a function of accepted norms, and it really seems that today the age of 70 is not really considered old age. But if he is wise, age has no meaning.
From here on out, everything is just estimates based on my opinion, not actual halachic answers. You can know this just as well as I do.
1. Indeed.
2. It is enough to stand up at the beginning of the lesson (a bit like saying “Ya’la ve’uwa” or “Raz’a” at a meal that begins in the day, etc.).
3. Indeed.
4. The blessing is for his old age and not for his non-Jewhood (like the blessing “He gave from his wisdom to the wise” upon the sages of the Gentiles). There is no free gift here for several reasons: a. The blessing is “given in exchange” for his old age. b. This establishment is also done for us (to teach us to respect old age and wisdom) and not just for him, and in any case it is not a free gift. Chazal already said that the poor Gentiles are supported along with the poor of Israel, and this is also ruled in halakhic law. This is like the act of Dr. A. who freed his slave to complete the minyan, and the Ramban wrote about it that it was permissible because it was done for his own benefit and therefore it is not a free gift (by the way, there are some of the latter and the former who understood that the Ramban’s intention was that the prohibition of freeing a slave is from the law “you shall not be enslaved”, but this is of course a mistake in understanding his words, since this is a cancellation of the act of the world in which you shall be enslaved. His intention is only to make an analogy to the law “you shall not be enslaved”).
5. I don’t remember an obligation to stand up in front of those performing a mitzvah. Where did you see that?
6. No. Common sense. And there is no need to deal with the mitzvah here, except that when you stand before the king, it makes no sense to respect someone else, even if he is the most respected of his subjects. Respect for the Maggid of the shiur and his friends is not to interrupt them in the middle of the shiur. It is true that when the Rosh Yeshiva entered the place during the shiur given by the king, they did so in a manner of standing (he and they are obligated to respect him), and this too is questionable.
Discover more from הרב מיכאל אברהם
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Leave a Reply
Please login or Register to submit your answer
